With seven different riders, from seven teams winning the seven spring Classics (eight if you count the E3 Harelbeke), it’s impossible to say that one particular rider or team dominated this year’s spring Classics. But here’s a look at the 10 best.

Spring Classics Barometer

Current Rank (Previous)

Rider

Notes

1

Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing)

Spartacus won one Monument (the Tour of Flanders) and finished on the podium in two more (Milan-Sanremo and Paris-Roubaix), that kind of consistency is hard to ignore, and it’s enough to net the Swiss star the top spot in our final Power Ranking of the spring Classics. From here, Cancellara’s program is a bit of mystery: He’s postponed his hour record attempt (for now) and doesn’t appear too likely to ride the Tour de France.

2

Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma–Quick-Step)

Terpstra went into the Classics as Tom Boonen’s top lieutenant and came out as the Paris-Roubaix champion. The Dutchman’s 2014 cobbled campaign also included his second victory in the Dwars door Vlaanderen semi-Classic and a sixth-place in the Tour of Flanders. Had a broken pedal not kept him from winning the Three Days of DePanne, he might have finished atop the ranking. His next stop will most likely be the Amgen Tour of California.

3

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar)

Valverde’s Fleche Wallonne victory was his eighth of the season, but his only victory in the spring Classics. But the Spaniard demonstrated incredible versatility this spring: He finished third on the gravel roads of Italy’s Strade Bianche, was competitive in cobbled Classics like Dwars door Vlaanderen and the E3 Harelbeke, and was the top favorite in the Ardennes. He now heads to the Tour de France eager to fight for the win.

4

Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEdge)

After winning his national road championship and the Tour Down Under earlier in the year, Gerrans eased up a bit (in fact, he didn’t even finish Paris-Nice or the Tour of the Basque Country). But he came back with a vengeance in the Ardennes to win Sunday’s Liege-Bastogne-Liege after a third-place in the Amstel Gold Race. The Australian joins Cancellara, Tom Boonen, and Philippe Gilbert as the only current riders with multiple Monument victories their resumes.

5

Philippe Gilbert (BMC)

After two winless springs, Gilbert rebounded this year to win the Fleche Brabançonne semi-Classic and the Amstel Gold Race (his third victory in the Dutch Classic). But while he did finish in the top-10 at both Fleche Wallonne and Liege-Bastogne-Liege (races he won in 2011), his fans can be forgiven for having wanted more. That said, “King Phil” has regained his swagger and can look ahead to the rest of the season—and September’s World Championships—with confidence.

6

Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma–Quick-Step)

If this were a ranking of the entire season to now, Kwiatkowski would likely hold a spot in the top-3. Instead, the 23-year-old sits sixth after a spring in which won his first semi-Classic (the Strade Bianche) and finished top-5 in all three Ardennes races. But hilly one-day races aren’t the only events in which the Polish champion excels. An incredible time trialist, Kwiatkowski is considered by many to be the sport’s next great Grand Tour contender. He’s a good bet for a top-5 finish at the Tour de France this July.

7

John Degenkolb (Team Giant-Shimano)

Degenkolb grabbed his first major one-day victory with a win in March’s Gent-Wevelgem, a Classic perfectly suited to the sprinter’s talents. Two weeks later though, he finished second at Paris-Roubaix to confirm that Germany might have a new contender for the cobbled Classics.

8

Alexander Kristoff (Katusha)

Kristoff poses an interesting question: Is winning a Monument but scoring nothing more than a fifth-place finish at the Tour of Flanders enough to deserve a higher ranking than more consistent riders with a less-impressive win on their season resumes? When compared to Kwiatkowski and Degenkolb, it was not, but in the case of our next rider, indeed it is.

9

Peter Sagan (Cannondale Pro Cycling)

After failing to win his first Monument last year, Sagan was expected to come into this year’s spring Classics ready to prove that he had learned from last year’s mistakes. His E3 victory was a nice addition to his palmares, but after falling short (again) in Sanremo, Flanders, and Roubaix, it’s clear that the Slovak still has some work to do. Luckily, at 24, time is still on his side.

10

Sep Vanmarcke (Belkin Pro Cycling)

The only rider on the list not to have a win so far this season, consistency is the key to Vanmarcke’s inclusion. The Belgian finished in the top-5 of almost every cobbled Classic he entered, an incredible run for a young rider one day expected to take over for Tom Boonen as Belgium’s Classics hero.

Under Consideration

Greg Van Avermaet (BMC)

“Close, but no cigar,” seems to be this BMC rider’s motto after yet another Classics campaign of near-misses. His second-place ride in the Tour of Flanders was impressive, but his aggressive ride in the Amstel Gold Race in support of Philippe Gilbert was perhaps more noble.